Carlo Chiarella – författare

A number of dramatic changes are currently reshaping infrastructure, a sector that investors and asset managers have traditionally considered to be a safe harbor in the field of alternative investments. Understanding the future of infrastructure is indispensable to guaranteeing a sustainable future for our planet and the welfare of the world’s population, and enhancing our knowledge of this asset class is one important step we can take toward reaching this crucial goal. 

This book collects a series of contributions by a group of Bocconi University researchers under the Antin IP Associate Professorship in Infrastructure Finance, which cover the key megatrends that are expected to reshape the way we think about infrastructure, and the implications for infrastructure investors and asset managers. Its goal is to improve and disseminate the culture of infrastructure among academics, professionals and policymakers. The main focus is on Europe and the European Union, andspecifically on three key sectors: power and energy, transportation infrastructure, and telecoms / ICT.  

Against this backdrop, a growing number of investors and asset managers have started looking at agriculture as an interesting investment theme to exploit the long-term strategic opportunities emerging from technological innovation and social changes. The industry is undergoing a process of transformation driven, on the one hand, by the emergence of new data and technologies that promise enhancing process efficiency and improve yields and, on the other hand, by an increased attention on the GHG emissions of agricultural processes and the impact of farmland on climate change, water and land scarcity. All these factors call for a radical rethinking of many agriculture business models.

This book provides a detailed overview and analysis of those new technologies with the greatest potential to disrupt agriculture products and processes by improving productivity and the management of food loss and waste, making a more efficient and sustainable use of resources and enhancing food security. Then, it discusses the implications for investors and asset managers, starting with an assessment of the status quo of agriculture investing and providing a thorough description of the agriculture asset class with an emphasis on its distinctive characteristics and the innovations in the technological processes used in agriculture and farming with the greatest potential to obtain long-term sustainable returns.